On the Wind Sailing

Navigating the challenges of parenthood whilst also maintaining an atypical lifestyle — be that of a sailor, adventurer, or anything that doesn't involve a 9-5 desk job — has been a consistent theme of this podcast. Now the tables have turned. Andy, Mia and August are raising their two boys whilst running a business and working as professional sailors themselves. Hoping to be a parent myself one d...

Pam Wall returns to the podcast, live from her living room in Ft. Lauderdale. Andy sat down to talk to Pam about the treasure trove of memories in her house, how she stays happy and inspirational despite the tragedy of losing her husband and daughter too soon, the relationship she has with her son, how she stays fit at nearly 80, and lots lots more. -- If you liked this conversation you'll LOVE  T...

Celeste Pomerantz wasn't a sailor until she signed up for a sail & ski trip out of Tromsø, Norway, that was headed north in search of un-skied peaks in Svalbard. The boat was called SOFIE, and was owned and skippered by friend of 59º North, Mats Grimsaeth. I discovered Celeste in the ski film Wavy 2 about the adventure and immediately reached out to her. We talked about sailing in the Arctic, her...

Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen was the first to reach the South Pole and the North Pole, but his greatest achievement may have been leading the first successful crossing of the Northwest Passage in 1906. Terje Andre Pedersen grew up inspired by Amundsen's great stories of exploration. He has followed his own dreams, and is soon to set sail towards the Northwest Passage in Amundsen's wake with a...

Ben Doerr of Sail Bainbridge returns to talk to Andy about motorboatin'! Andy got inspired to call Ben when he saw an ad for a 65-foot converted Swedish Navy ship for sale in Stockholm as a place to live on the water. Andy though, 'hmm, who do I know that did exactly this, and with a family to boot...?' Ben of course! Ben and his young family have been living continuously on motor yachts (while th...

McKayla Bower is an experienced outdoorswoman who is preparing to set off around the world alone on her San Juan 30, Swirl. Her goal is to become the first openly transgender person to circumnavigate and the first queer person to do so solo.  We talked about her journey of coming out, moving aboard her boat and teaching herself to sail, and learning about fear and risk in the outdoors. Instagram @...

Legendary Finnish sailor Tapio Lehtinen returns to the podcast to talk to Andy about losing his boat in the recent Golden Globe Race and the emotional toll it took on him. They discuss theories on why the boat sank and talk about how that experience has influenced his preparation for the upcoming Ocean Globe Race. Tapio is preparing his classic Swan 55 GALIANA with a crew of young Finnish sailors....

Andy & Matt ramble on about anything and everything, from sailing in Greenland to DJ'ing in the turntable era and most things in between. Andy was able to catch up with Matt right before he left for the 2023 Ocean Research Project expedition to Greenland the very next day. Matt is always an interesting guest and this episode is no exception. To support Matt's mission and follow his expedition nort...

In less than a month, Andrew Bedwell from the UK will set sail on his homemade yacht, Big C, in a daring attempt to break the World Record for the smallest boat to ever have sailed across the Atlantic Ocean. The previous record has stood for thirty years, and if Andrew is successful, his record will be very hard to beat indeed. His boat is one meter long, and the voyage is 1,900 nautical miles. Do...

Nikki Henderson & Andy Schell hosts a panel of sailors at the 2022 Annapolis Sailboat Show to talk about the essence of seam'nship and what offshore sailing is all about, from technical issues to facing fear and philosophical ambitions. Panelists include Matt Rutherford, Ryan Ellison, Emma Garschagen, Phil Gutowski, Kristen Berry & Pam Wall. Don't miss this year's Seam'nship Workshop at the 2023 A...

Andy sits down with his dad and sister to reminisce about past sailing adventures and future plans while they are in Sweden for an early spring visit.  -- If you liked this conversation you'll LOVE  The QUARTERDECK , 59 North's 'deep dives on the art of seamanship.' Join our interactive community and get involved in the conversation at  quarterdeck.59-north.com . First two weeks FREE, then multipl...

#393. Pip Hare is the 8th woman to ever finish the Vendée Globe. With that adventure complete, she is now well on her way to her next solo circumnavigation in 2024. She's got a new boat and a professional team behind her as she prepares a competitive campaign for the next series of races.  Andy first interviewed Pip ahead of her previous Vendée Globe, and for her second appearance on the podcast,...

#392. This year is the 10th anniversary of the podcast! To celebrate we're going to go back and revisit some of the most memorable conversations over the years. This week it's the first ever interview between Matt Rutherford and Andy, before his record-setting around the Americas voyage and before 59 North even existed. Come be a fly on the wall with Andy and Matt.  Find out more about what Matt i...

#391. Simon Prestø-He is the intelligence officer on the loss prevention and emergency response team at the Norwegian Yacht Club. August and Simon sat down for a chat in the situation room at the club.   -- If you liked this conversation you'll LOVE  The QUARTERDECK , 59 North's 'deep dives on the art of seamanship.' Join our interactive community and get involved in the conversation at  quarterde...

#390. Rachael Miller is the Founder of Rozalia Project for a Clean Ocean and co-inventor of the Cora Ball, the world's first microfiber-catching laundry ball. She is an expedition scientist, National Geographic Explorer, and Explorers Club Fellow. Rachael captains the 60' sailing research vessel, AMERICAN PROMISE, certified hundreds of people to be sailing instructors, trained Navy SEALS to find u...

#389. Sarah Armour is the captain of Mystic Seaport Museum's sail training Schooner Brilliant. For the past decade, Sarah has been working in environmental education, sail training, and experiential learning aboard vessels like the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Pride of Baltimore II, Lady Maryland, and Geronimo. Sarah grew up in the Hudson Valley and is on the Sloop Clearwater's board of director...

#388. Last month ISBJØRN set sail for a unique, wintertime event on the other side of the dark and stormy North Sea—the Up Helly Aa fire festival on Shetland. Skipper Jon Amtrup was joined by a hearty crew for the crossing and to partake in the experience. Have a listen as Jon and August recap the passage. -- If you liked this conversation you'll LOVE  The QUARTERDECK , 59 North's 'deep dives on t...

#387. Elliott Smith was competing as the youngest sailor in the 2022 Golden Globe Race when his bowsprit broke off the coast of Cape Town. He made a repair that got him across the Southern Ocean to Australia where he ended up retiring from the race. Elliott is a Sailor, Surfer, Artist, Deep Thinker and Big Dreamer. -- If you liked this conversation you'll LOVE  The QUARTERDECK , 59 North's 'deep d...

#386. Tania Aebi sailed around the world alone on her Contessa 26, Varuna. She cast off from New York in May 1985 when she was 18 years old, and returned in November 1987, having visited 23 countries along the way. After returning from her circumnavigation, Tania wrote her bestselling book, Maiden Voyage. Emma visited Tania at her home in Vermont, where Tania spends her time writing, caring for th...

#385. FALKEN, our newly refit Farr 65, is finally sailing. August Sandberg hosts a 59 North 'Admiralty' roundtable, recapping the first sea trial on the new boat, which we did last week here in the English Channel. With gusts up to 55 knots, hail squalls, sunshine, big waves, fast reaching and breaking the things that 'needed' to break, the sea trial was a massive success and a hell of a lot of fu...

#384. Andy & Mia spend an extended intro recapping the ups and downs of 2022 at 59 North, highlighting the sale of ICEBEAR, the launch of FALKEN, Andy's scare with melanoma skin cancer, Mia's first trans-Atlantic since Axel was born, and more. Then we replay one of our favorite all-time episodes, a roundtable chat with John Kretschmer in Bermuda in 2021, with Andy, Emma & August co-hosting. Merry...

#383. Young Cruisers' Association exists to connect like-minded folks through sailing and cruising. They define themselves as "a collection of young, salty vagabonds forming a community of the sea". Emma talked with three of the five people behind YCA: Caroline, Logan, and Brian. Logan and Caroline Rowell brought the Young Cruisers Association to life back in 2012, while they were out cruising on...

#382. Matty Duncan is bound solo around Cape Horn on ICE WARRIOR, his 1987 Moody 346. He left from the UK this summer to head for Chile, the 'Wrong Way Round'. He is now undergoing repairs in Brazil, after a rigging failure offshore. His project aims to raise awareness about mental health issues by Matty telling his life story while on this solo adventure. Emma called Matty to discuss the thousand...

Lyall & Katie Burgess have a shore base 2000' up the volcano in Hawaii, but have spent the past year living aboard and cruising their Dufour 38 BLAKE with their two young daughters. They bought the boat new as part of a charter fleet, then after taking ownership in September, sailed across the Atlantic with the ARC rally, where Lyall & Katie actually met working on the staff years ago. I caught up...

Motts Mueller is the longtime director, and now owner of Broadreach , whose unforgettable summer adventures for teens specialize in scuba diving, sailing, marine biology, veterinary medicine or wildlife biology. Motts has been a part of the company since 1993, when he was a student on the first-ever trip, sea-kayaking in the BVI. Recently he bought the business from founder (and former podcast gue...